I certainly hope those of you who don’t want a Democratic governor for another four years will vote for Tom Tancredo. Dan Maes and Scott McInnis have shot themselves in the foot. With or without Tom entering the race, they cannot beat John Hickenlooper. I believe Tom can.

Tom is the voice for thousands of us who believe illegal criminals, who are breaking our laws, carrying their Mexican flag while demonstrating, and demanding citizenship should enter this wonderful country legally. They truly have no respect or loyalty for the United States.

Barbara Carlson, Littleton

This letter was published in the July 30 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

Why should the Republican Party fold because Tom Tancredo throws a temper tantrum? Kenny Rogers was correct: You have to know when the hold them and when to fold them. This is the time for the Republican Party to stand tall. There are a lot of good Republican candidates out there who need to be supported. The only political obituary to be written in all of this is that of Tom Tancredo and not the Republican Party.

Calvin Lapuyade, Lone Tree

This letter was published in the July 30 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

I didn’t realize that Tom Tancredo was supporting John Hickenlooper for governor.

But when Tom Tancredo jumped to the American Constitution Party, he sure put Republican candidates for governor in a tough spot.

Maybe if Hickenlooper is elected governor, he can find a spot for Tom Tancredo in his cabinet, some place that would fit his big ego and big mouth. Of course, Hickenlooper would have to put up with Tancredo’s pea-size brain.

Bill Wangnild, Loveland

This letter was published in the July 30 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

See Scott squirm and Dick rage and Jane whine. Their big party has turned into a disaster. Watch the Colorado Republicans become a national laughingstock.

See Tom run. Run, Tom, run.
Martin Rush, Wheat Ridge

This letter was published in the July 30 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

I have the greatest respect for what The Post’s reporters do covering topsy-turvy political campaigns. But after reading the first three words of the second paragraph of your article — “But political observers … ” — I mumbled through my Grape-Nuts: “Insert Katy Atkinson/Eric Sondermann/Floyd Ciruli quote here.” And not to be disappointed, along each one came before the story’s end.

I have no suggestions for alternative voices, but surely these can’t be the only three people with “observations” on politics in Colorado. And if they’re so astute, how come we don’t see their names on a ballot? In fact, until we do, perhaps we could give Katy, Eric, Floyd — and the readers — a little rest!
Steve Costello, Louisville

This letter was published in the July 30 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

Joan Baronberg’s idea is wonderful. But first we need to get the Denver City Council to permit such a basic and important thing as a truly local food source. It is illegal in Denver to sell food from the lot on which it is grown. So forget about a mobile produce stand — that is simply too extreme for the City Council, which believes that farmers markets provide all the access folks need to locally grown food. Not! Many items sold at most farmers markets come from hundreds of miles away.

If Denver really wants to get serious and truly promote the local production and marketing of food, the brand new zoning code needs some significant amending. Too bad it had to be adopted in its current form, completely lacking any real sustainability and local food production incentives. Not to mention allowing for the keeping of food-producing animals. It is time for the City Council to step up and fix these huge problems and make Denver a national leader in local food sourcing and sustainable practices.

John Beauparlant, Denver

The writer is co-founder of Denver Backyard Farms.

This letter was published in the July 30 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

So, The Post’s editorial board endorses a public-option (read: government) medical insurance plan that the Congressional Budget Office estimates would cost 5 percent to 7 percent less than private insurance premium costs. Supposing this were to happen, what would be the result? Well, you and I (and anyone who can count up to 7 percent) would quickly drop their private insurance and enroll in the government public-option plan. And, voila, the government would then completely control America’s health insurance industry as well as the finance industry, the auto industry, the banking industry and, if Congress is to get its way, the energy industry. What a wonderful idea!

John Hetlinger, Broomfield

This letter was published in the July 30 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

Fred Brown assumes the American Petroleum Institute’s ad campaign targets the taxes that consumers pay at the pump. The focus of our ads is to highlight legislative proposals to impose new taxes on oil and natural gas industry operations. Those taxes would make it more difficult for U.S. companies to compete against large, multinational companies — often owned by foreign governments — and would make our domestic resources more costly to produce. The result? The loss of U.S. jobs and lowered domestic production at a time when both are in desperate need.

It is not a matter of our industry’s passing on higher tax costs to consumer. It’s an economic reality: historically, less production has led to less supply, and less supply at a time of steady or increasing demand leads to higher prices.

John Felmy, Washington, D.C.

The writer is chief economist for the American Petroleum Institute.

This letter was published in the July 30 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

Andrew Romanoff’s new campaign ad underestimates Coloradans. Romanoff is claiming to be a “senator for the rest of us,” which contradicts his own history of accepting political action committee (PAC) money and even running his own PAC for a number of years. Condemning his opponent for actions he has engaged in is hypocritical, misleading and dirty politics.

Voters are not swayed by negative campaigns or candidates who sling mud to win. We care about our jobs, our homes, our children’s education, and the future of our country. We want to thrive and we want someone who is committed to making sure that happens.

Sen. Michael Bennet is a representative focused on the bigger picture. He has been committed to finding solutions for the problems facing this nation and has dedicated himself to passing comprehensive reform that makes our lives better.
Darkness and light cannot occupy the same space at the same time. Sen. Michael Bennet, thank you for being a very bright light for Colorado.

Laverne Morris Palmer, Aurora

This letter was published in the July 29 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

Present perfect progressive: verb tense describing an action that occurred in the past and continues at the present time.

Michael Bennet’s recent television advertisement states that “Andrew Romanoff’s been taking PAC money” (present perfect progressive) to indicate that Romanoff is lying. Rather, Romanoff has been up front about the fact that he took (past tense) such money in 2007 and before. Having grown concerned about the deleterious effects of corporate donations in Washington, Romanoff courageously elected to “not take a dime of their money” (present tense).

It is ironic that in Bennet’s advertisement accusing his opponent of dishonesty, it is instead Bennet who is untruthful. Since Bennet is a lawyer, it is safe to assume that he knows the difference between “has been taking” and “took.” By deliberately wording his advertisement using incorrect verb tense, Bennet told us much, not about Romanoff, but about himself. Integrity is high on the list of factors I consider when voting. Michael Bennet has not earned my vote — ever.

Bill McCarron, Denver

This letter was published in the July 29 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

Your recent piece about the Republican primary for state treasurer got a couple things right: there are two candidates, and we think differently about taxes. But let’s set the record straight as to which of us favors tax increases.

It was my Republican opponent who supported the largest tax increase in Colorado history, Referendum C. I opposed it. The way to restore fiscal sanity in this state is to cut spending and reinstate spending caps, not to raise taxes.

It should come as no surprise that I am also a strong supporter of the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights. At the hands of spendthrift politicians like Gov. Bill Ritter and Treasurer Cary Kennedy, TABOR has suffered a death by a thousand cuts from multiple tax increases disguised as fee increases — all without voter approval. I favor restoring the people’s right to vote on any proposed tax increases, but that does not mean you’ll find me urging anyone to vote “yes” when the next big tax proposal comes along.

Walker Stapleton, Denver

This letter was published in the July 29 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

Those of us who live in the Sloan’s Lake neighborhood welcome the annual Dragon Boat Festival, with its multicultural offerings and family-friendly atmosphere. But too much is too much, with an estimated 100,000 folks trying to park in our neighborhood. The result is noisy frustration that is shared by festival-goers and residents. It detracts from the event’s purpose of bringing folks together for fun and peace.

We urge festival organizers to bring back the shuttle service that allowed attendees to park at Invesco Field or the Pepsi Center and ride a bus to the park. The neighborhood streets and residents cannot accommodate the parking needs of this large event. Bring back the shuttle service and we’ll continue to support this event.

L. Dunklee, Denver

This letter was published in the July 29 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

“Our Town” is one of my favorite plays of all time. Therefore, I was delighted to learn that two productions of this Pulitzer Prize winner were available to view in the Denver area. Based on John Moore’s review of the Colorado Shakespeare Festival staging, it looks like I made the right choice of going to see the Platte Valley Players perform. I found the production to be top-notch and loyal to Thornton Wilder’s vision. Kudos to the PVP and their director.

John Rector, Loveland

This letter was published in the July 29 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

In this column, Mike Rosen indulges his talent for political wordplay. He begins by changing the plural noun “media” into a singular one so that he can — gratingly, to my ear — say that the “liberal media is in love with Barack Obama.” He then says that when “radical leftists” deny liberal media bias, it is, ironically, “a semantic ploy.” In the next sentence, he lands the liberal media on a “perch on the far left.” Rosen describes himself as a conservative, a term that traditionally means preserving the present, but perhaps he is perched on the far right where he can project his own radical extremism onto the mainstream media and the rest of us.

Phillip K. Tompkins, Denver

This letter was published in the July 29 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

Mike Rosen misses the mark in his latest column. The mass media are not liberal so much as pro-government. They gravitate to political power, and as such, do everything they can to promote wars of aggression, caesarism, militarism, nationalism, empire, the welfare state, torture, secret kidnapping, secret prisons, secret assassinations, Fed business cycles, bank bailouts, corporatism, and the whole rotten federal regime.

I’ll never forget the schoolgirl enthusiasm of Katie Couric on “The Today Show” as she interviewed one of the ubiquitous retired generals during the run-up to the Iraq war, as he explained the technical virtues of the smart bombs that would soon be raining down on Baghdad. I remember thinking, this is the liberal media?

Larry Ruane, Parker

This letter was published in the July 29 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

Twenty years ago my daughter did an independent study project at Cherry Creek High School related to race prejudice and the future of the melding of the races. Her idealistic 1990 view was that soon we would see people as individual persons, not colored by their race but evaluated by what they did for society and their fellow human beings.

Shirley Sherrod — whose father was killed by the Ku Klux Klan, and who overcame her issues with racism to be able to serve all persons, black, white or other, and serve them well — was fired because no one took the time to look at the facts. This is a tragedy for the youth of today, who can be redirected into racism, from which my generation tried to escape.

Why are we still seeing people in colors? I am a combination of Native American, Irish, Scottish and who knows what else. But I am an involved American and I resent those who continue to divide us based on color, creed, religion, age and any other parameter that can divide us into right and wrong, good or bad, righteous or unrighteous.

Ruth Ann Kirschman, Denver

This letter was published in the July 28 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

Shirley Sherrod was fired because Andrew Breitbart, maliciously and intentionally, manufactured a fake story. Sean Hannity grabbed the fake story, did no due diligence, as any legitimate “newsman” would do, and proceeded to create a firestorm of fake indignation.

People prefer to believe what they prefer to be true. When faced with overwhelming evidence to the contrary, but still preferring the “fake” story to the real, people will engage in all manner of mental gymnastics to make this square peg fit into a round hole. That is apparently what Hannity did in response to the Breitbart claptrap. And, a woman with an impressive history of good works, lost her job. Surely, as a people, we’re better than this.

Sandra Winter, Denver

This letter was published in the July 28 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

Amidst all the hubbub of the Shirley Sherrod incident, I am amazed by the elephant in the room everyone seems to be ignoring. Or perhaps I missed something. How is it that Andrew Breitbart, who is responsible for the “creatively edited” video, walks away scot-free? Why is he not being held accountable for posting these lies? Is a libelous viral video subject to criminal or civil charges? The shared silence of the liberal media, the Democratic Party and anyone possessing any ethics or integrity is deafening.

Steven Long, Arvada

This letter was published in the July 28 edition. For information on how to send a letter to the editor, click here.

Guidelines: The Post welcomes letters up to 150 words on topics of general interest. Letters must include full name, home address, day and evening phone numbers, and may be edited for length, grammar and accuracy.